44C-27 |
Quality evaluation of hydroponically grown processing tomatoes |
C. MORARU1, T. C. Lee1, L. Logendra2, and H. Janes2. (1) Dept. of Food Science Dept./Center for Advanced Food Technology Science, Rutgers, The State Univ. of New Jersey, 65 Dudley Rd., New Brunswick, NJ 08901, (2) Dept. of Plant Science, Rutgers, the State Univ. of New Jersey, 65 Dudley Rd., New Brunswick, NJ 08901 Tomato is a major crop worldwide and NASA has selected it as a candidate for use in long-term manned space missions. In space missions a single variety can be grown, using a hydroponic-type system. Since the diet will include fresh and processed tomatoes, the chosen variety must be suitable for both tasks. The objective of this study was to characterize the quality and growth performance of hydroponically-grown processing tomatoes and to choose a variety most appropriate for both direct consumption and processing. Ten commercial processing tomato varieties were selected for hydroponic growth in the Rutgers University greenhouse, under controlled conditions. Their growth and yield performance were evaluated using indicators such as fruit number and weight, harvest index, plant height and days until first harvest. Processing quality was evaluated through measurements including soluble solids, pH, Bostwick consistency and lycopene content. Quality for direct consumption was evaluated using a 16-member sensory panel and additional indexes such as acidity. Based on our results, SUN 6117 and BOS 3155 varieties performed best in terms of growth/yield performance (harvest index 0.75 and 0.69, clusters in main shoot 3.8 and 3.6, height 75 and 81 cm). Interestingly, their processing quality indexes (soluble solids 5.33 and 5.25°Bx, firmness 10.95 and 7.77 N/mm2, lycopene content 19.39 and 18.99 mg/100g) and sensory evaluation data also ranked them as best varieties. There is limited information on the quality of processing tomatoes grown hydroponically. This study fills the need, showing performance in terms of both growth characteristics and fruit quality. Besides providing NASA with the most appropriate tomato variety, this information may be useful for evaluating the effects of hydroponic growth on processing tomatoes. Performance comparison between hydroponically-grown direct consumption and processing tomatoes is also facilitated by this data.
Session 44C, Fruit & Vegetable Products: Chemistry
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